We present to you the sixsth, expanded edition of the publication on the environment. As a regular edition of the State Statistical Office, the publication is issued every two years. The basic function of statistics is, through statistical data, to present the economic, social and demographic phenomena in a country.

The environmental statistics available at the State Statistical Office cover only a particular set of indicators. In order to get a more comprehensive picture of the conditions of the environment in the Republic of Macedonia, the State Statistical Office, in cooperation with the Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning, has prepared this sixsth edition of the publication on environmental statistics.

The publication contains a large set of environmental indicators, which are available in these and in other institutions in the Republic of Macedonia and which show the quality of the environmental media (water, air, soil), the environmental problems (depletion of the ozone layer and climate changes, environmental protection and loss of bio-diversity, waste production and management) and the sector policy making (indicators related to agriculture, forestry, tourism and environmental protection policy instruments).

In the future, the State Statistical Office plans to expand the scope of environmental indicators in order to produce a report depicting the situation of the environment through quantitative data acquired via scientifically based measurements and analyses, indicating the sources, causes, consequences and trends of specific conditions.

All suggestions and remarks aimed at improving the quality of this publication will be greatly appreciated.